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Last January, I posted about eight oft-delayed games that had been sitting in my "upcoming" list for a number of years. And - much to my surprise - four of them finally managed to be released in 2018.

The results were ... let's say, "mixed."

  • My hopes for Chasm were low going in, but I was still disappointed with just how uncharismatic it was. An absent story, boring (procedural) level design, and flat combat mechanics left me with no reason to keep playing it.

  • CrossCode was, at least, extremely memorable. Some of its systems and ambitions were really cool, and the production values were surprisingly good -- I just hated how slow-paced and filler-stuffed the final package was, and how hostile the difficulty curve became.

  • Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn did end up being a joke, but not a very good one. At least I got some fun screenshots out of it.

  • Miraculously, Timespinner was actually good. I had a few gripes about its storytelling, and its Igavania inspirations were blatant, but the game was well-executed and I seriously enjoyed playing it.

As for the other four titles, they appear to still be plodding along.

On the subject of year-on-year disappointment -- let's look at the Glog stats from 2018!

2017's games-played count was pretty high, and I failed to reach that same bar in 2018. But, hey, not bad.

A lot of that 2017 count came from replays, including remasters. And even though one of each (Ōkami HD and Diablo III) carried over into 2018, I didn't end up replaying much, last year.

Reiterating my previous praise, Ōkami's HD facelift was gorgeous, and its beauty really helped overcome some of the game's more awkward components.

The Shadow of the Colossus remake didn't age quite as well, due to its sprawling yet barren world, but taking down colossi was still a blast -- especially at a stable framerate.

Red Faction: Guerrilla Re-Mars-tered has a brilliant name, but the game itself is suffering from the ravages of time. (The world needs a new drive-trucks-through-buildings game.)

Compared to all those, the high-def re-release of Vanquish felt like a misfire. It wasn't enough of a visual spectacle, compared to today's games, to distract from its sometimes-broken mechanics and its always-dumb story.

I'm kinda sad at what happened to Diablo III. People have told me that it's a fun game to come back to over and over, but the re-balancing they've done - to emphasize seasonal endgame grinding, I guess - turned it into a total bore, for me.

And Portal 2 is still good. Not as revolutionary as back in 2011, but Cave Johnson is a timeless treasure.

On to DLCs. My 2017 included a lot of them, largely thanks to Borderlands 2; 2018 was more tame, although still substantial.

I guess that Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is considered a "Standalone Expansion" for the Gwent digital CCG. Thronebreaker was pretty great, albeit lacking the narrative heft of Geralt's own adventures.

Speaking of, the Witcher 3 expansions Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine were highlights of my year. I just ... can't effuse enough about Witcher 3. Though I will still do more effusing later in this post.

While it took me some time to get around to them, the Deus Ex: Mankind Divided DLCs System Rift and A Criminal Past did end up feeling worthwhile.

Horizon Zero Dawn: The Frozen Wilds was fine, I mean, it was good, but paled in comparison to the main game.

The Baba Yaga mid-story DLC for Rise of the Tomb Raider wasn't "bad," but felt ineffective and unnecessary. (Not unlike the game overall.)

Diablo III: Reaper of Souls's Act V did not redeem the tedious grind that the main game has become.

And Claptastic Voyage doubled down on the mistakes of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, to the extent that I couldn't be bothered to finish it.

Moving on to platform variety...

In 2017 I played games on seven different platforms, retiring my DS and Wii U. My platform activity in 2018 was less varied, covering only four, including the ever-predominant PC.

Paper Mario: Sticker Star was almost certainly the last thing my 3DS will ever see. Not a great send-off, unfortunately. But, the system overall had a pretty good run.

My PS4 is still going strong, with Shadow of the Colossus, Horizon Zero Dawn, and God of War this past year; and The Last Guardian and Spider-Man still to come.

Something that stands out about this graph is the lack of Switch on it. I have some plans for Switch gaming next year - a replay of Breath of the Wild, some challenge-based unlocking in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and maybe I'll try out Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle - but, after finishing Super Mario Odyssey in 2017, the system hasn't really commanded my attention.

Speaking of Odyssey, it was one of fairly few games that I rated "Awesome" in 2017. In 2018, despite playing less games overall, more of them felt Awesome to me.

Middle-earth: Shadow of War, like its predecessor, wasn't revolutionary but was a shit-ton of orc-murderin' fun. Prey had some imperfections and annoyances, but blew me away with its mechanical depth and interactive world. Horizon Zero Dawn needed a better inventory system, but had plenty of thrilling combat, and an amazing story.

And God of War expertly immersed me in its rich mythos and charming characters. It's easy for me to see why this game won so many "best of 2018" awards.

But the best thing I played last year was definitely The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and its aforementioned expansions. In addition to being a more acccessible, more exciting, and more stable iteration on Witcher 2, Wild Hunt achieved something that few games have: it made my story choices feel both meaningful, and interesting.

God of War, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Witcher 3 all impressed me with incredibly well-built worlds and well-told stories. But where most choice-based games fall into a trap of making one option "correct," and the others narratively unfulfilling -- Geralt's story was rewarding throughout, regardless of how I played it.

So what's on the docket for 2019?

Well, if they actually make it this year, maybe those other four long-delayed games. I'm unsure about Rage 2, but it's starting to look like a more zany and fun take on Mad Max. And it's possible that Crackdown 3 will turn out okay.

If I'm smart enough, hopefully I can finish Alchemia. There's all that Switch stuff I mentioned, above. I've still got a deep, deep backlog, particularly in terms of PC RPGs. And it's been a while since I replayed Sleeping Dogs, The Saboteur, or Chrono Trigger (whose PC re-release has been calling out to me).

And, maybe if I get tired of waiting for the inevitable PC version, I'll consider picking up Red Dead Redemption 2.

Here's to a joyful and game-ful 2019!

Footnote: The first Glog post will turn fifteen years old this week. Wild, right?